If you need to create redirects in WordPress, you may not be sure how to do this. As a beginner, there are many things you may not know how to do, but with this quick tutorial, you will know how to create redirects easily. Here’s how it’s done.
What is a Redirect?
Before you create a redirect, it’s a good idea to understand what it is. A redirect is a way for your website to send a message to the browser of a visitor letting them know the page they are trying to view has been moved. It will automatically send the visitor to a new page, which you choose.
There are a few types of redirect including, 301, 302 and 307. The most common is a 301 redirect and that is what we will discuss in this tutorial.
The 301 redirect is used whenever you move a page or post on your site. It allows you to redirect the visitor to the new page or post. Most commonly, you will use this when you delete a page or post in favor of a newer page or post. It can also be used when you change the permalinks of posts and pages on your site.
If you don’t use a 301 redirect, the visitor will see a 404 not found error page instead. This won’t help your conversions and will also hurt your overall SEO.
Using Simple 301 Redirects
There are many plugins that will help you with redirect, but Simple 301 Redirect is both free and easy to use. This plugin will allow you to easily set up your 301 redirects.
Once you have installed and activated the plugin, you can access it by going to Settings>>301 Redirects.
From this section, you can easily add the URL you want to redirect and where you want it to go. This is by far the easiest way to set up your 301 redirects and the recommendation for new WordPress users.
Other 301 redirect plugins to consider include:
It’s also possible to set up 301 redirects by editing the .htaccess file, but this is more advanced. By using one of the listed plugins, you can quickly set up your 301 redirects without any knowledge of code.
